Thursday, October 30, 2014

Oh my gosh. I can't wait. Next Friday we're flying to Austin, TX with Paul. This is our first flight together since our honeymoon (in 2010), and before that I hadn't flown since summer 2008. I happen to LOVE flying. Yes, there are annoying parts but that's true with everything and I just love it. I'm excited about going to see Paul's mom too but let's focus on the flights and the travel. Usually we are drivers. We drove to Texas last visit and all of our little trips are by car. So I am excited about the flights. Let me tell you about it. It starts with the organizing. Researching flights, then finding the right ones for a good price then paying. Then comes all the little details, where to park, when to leave. Then I start reading blog posts on travel and packing and oh, it's fun. These posts were particularly helpful: How to Pack for 10 days in 1 Carry-on and The Travelling Blogger.

Then the packing - picking clothing is much trickier when flying. I can't just bring a giant bag with every single thing in it. I'm forced to think about what to bring and then work through that. This is helpful for a chronic over packer like me. It makes me pick outfits rather than clothes. It lets me sift through outfits and pick favorites.

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

I started blogging when I was 16. I love it. I never thought I would still be blogging at 31, or that this thing I picked up as a lark would turn into such a constant and rewarding part of my life. I had no idea what the blogging world would turn into - it's so flashy and pretty. Back when I started it was almost like a form of chat rooms. It was also a lot more private, in a way. I mean only a couple friends read it and no one else. I also just babbled. Word vomit. All over the page. I especially love that one quote, it's true that I was blogging before it was cool - but more specifically I was doing it in the least cool way possible. That makes me giggle.

Friday, October 17, 2014

Nashville, Grey's Anatomy....I'm sometimes so impressed with the ability of a show to sweep me a way and keep me hooked week after week. Man. I mean I've been watching Grey's Anatomy since I was 23 - I started watching it while recovering from surgery and have been hooked every since. I love it. I didn't like it the fist couple years it was on, but once I actually gave it a chance I fell in love. It's the first show I watch when I have time to catch up. Nashville can come in spurts for me - but when I repicked it up and watched Season 2 on Netflix I was rehooked and am continuing to love it. I don't love all the drama, but the characters are so engaging and it's a world that so foreign to mine. Oh and Jeff Fordham is a despicable human being. I am amazed. He is horrible. I really really hate watching him on this show.

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Books, Books, Books: Oh books, I love you. Books are the stability that TV can lack - there is always something to read in a book - there isn't always a new episode to watch on PVR. But books don't disappoint. Lately I've r-read two books that I love. Maeve Binchy's "Glass Lake" and LM Montgomery "Blue Castle." Through both re-readings I laughed, I cried....both books were like visiting with old friends. I sometimes forget the power of a comfortable book - like a warm sweater and cup of tea, or a kind friend on a rainy day.

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Today I got to have a lovely combination of warm sweater, cup of tea, rainy day and good friend. Emily and baby Madeline came to visit today for tea and company and it was absolutely lovely. It doesn't matter how much time is in between visits, they are always so natural and enjoyable. I'm so thankful for a friend like Ems - she's been my friend since I was 23, just like Grey's Anatomy, and I love being her friend! Plus Madeline is very sweet - she is a great little baby and wonderful to hold while chatting.

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Lasagna: it's easy. I love to follow Kate's Lasagna recipe, though I usually add a bunch of veggies to the sauce. Today I will be making a few big batches of this Lasagna - one big one for my house, one big one for a family member and their family, one small one with Zucchini layers instead noodle (for me). I am excited to put it together - it's just as easy to make a bunch as it is to make one. So I often make up a few batches, sometimes freeze an extra. I'm very excited to try this tonight!

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iPhone 6 - shipped! Actually arrived! I'm trying to set it up now and am really enjoying how it looks! Can't wait to figure it out more!!!!

Thursday, October 16, 2014

In November I will be going to the States 4 different times - ridiculous. We have a 90th birthday to go to for one of Paul's family members, then a trip to Texas (flights in and out of Seattle), Black Friday Shopping with some lovely ladies and a trip with a girlfriend for the day to prep for a baby shower. Because of this ridiculous amount of USA trips I thought it would be a good plan to spend a couple months before that using up our food stock that we already have - making sure we're actually eating everything we have on hand. So we went one final time in August and then entered operation "eat through the freezer and pantry." It's been going well. This doesn't change my grocery budget, we're eating through the stockpile of non-perishables but I still need to purchase the produce and such. We are doing well at going through the meats and canned goods - but we keep running out of milk and eggs and cheese, sadly. As September marched on I was thankful that Paul's mom was around and taking a day trip to Bellingham, so she was able to get us stocked back up again for milk and eggs and cheese. Then we ended up in Point Roberts for gas and milk and eggs last week - another helpful time. And yesterday I got a text from Paul's sister asking to pop over to get something she needed - well that worked perfectly as we were super low on cheese again, and our canned corn and diced tomatoes - those are all non-negotiables. Also our current housemates go through TONS of milk and eggs, so those were getting low already. With two more weeks until trip number 1, this was a helpful little trip!

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

12 days ago I came online and blogged about how I was going to write more. Ha! And radio silence ever since. Oh Tara. Such good intentions. But I have been resting, and working really hard at work, and enjoying thanksgiving, and working on projects, and spending time with my sweet love. So I consider the last two weeks a win anyways.

Thursday, October 2, 2014

So I've been thinking lately that I wanted to blog more. Except sometimes it's so hard to motivate myself. I think sometimes people see the constant go go go in my life and assume this is never a problem for me - but it is a constant daily problem. When I saw The Daily Tay say that she would be doing BLOGTOBER I thought, perfect. Except that now it's the 2nd and I didn't manage to blog yesterday. So yeah, there's that. I don't have any real goal for the blogging aside from blogging more than I am now. With pregnancy, a full time job, ministry involvement (here's looking at you womens ministry and lifegroup!) and feeding a house with 4 students living with us all being part of daily life it seems unwise to make a set goal that I'll only disappoint myself with. A goal of "more" works for me.